


~忍者物語~ Ninja Tales: Volume 1 ~ 降雪~ Snowfall

by ACSkywalker, LindiOutOfAfrica



Series: ~忍者物語~ Ninja Tales [1]
Category: Naruto, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2003), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Chaplin is a really chill dude, Dimension Travel, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:55:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23881909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACSkywalker/pseuds/ACSkywalker, https://archiveofourown.org/users/LindiOutOfAfrica/pseuds/LindiOutOfAfrica
Summary: While the turtles are topside for some training, Donatello finds a peculiar object, and everything changes...WARNING:LanguageViolenceTriggering subjects (Emotional abuse, PTSD and Depression)Forms part of ACSkywalker's "Walker" series.
Series: ~忍者物語~ Ninja Tales [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1721182
Kudos: 3





	1. Foreword

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the first volume of Ninja Tales!
> 
> I started writing Ninja Tales on FanFiction.net almost 10 years ago. **YES IT’S BEEN THAT LONG!!!**
> 
> At the time, I was still pretty new at writing in general, and as I wrote Yuki’s story, I realised there was no way I would able to write out the initial plot I had for her without making her a total Mary Sue. Just as I was about to give up hope in 2013, I met Aidan ( _AKA ACSywalker_ ). After noting some of my issues with the fiction he proposed the idea to have ‘Ninja Tales’ officially become a part of his ‘Walker’ series. Turns out this series is a collection very intricate stories involving fandoms being parallel universes, time travel and more. And with the way he wrote the lore, I could loosely follow the initial plot ideas I had without butchering Yuki’s entire character. Yay!
> 
> Unfortunately, I’d already written myself into a corner at that point, so I’m starting over here.
> 
> And also, the Naruto manga was only completed in 2015, making some things even worse >.>
> 
> Yeah... so without further a do, let me officially present a new and shiny revamp of Ninja Tales!


	2. Chapter 1

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 1

* * *

It was a quiet night in New York City. Unseen by the citizens of the 'City that never sleeps', shadows zipped along the buildings as figures seemingly danced through the air, moving from roof to roof.

"Cowabunga!" one of the figures yelled.

"Shut ya trap Mikey!" another hissed.

"Oooh...Raphy-boy is getting angry." Mikey practically sang.

"That's it _Wise Guy_...” Raph growled, “I'm gonna-"

"Raphael! Calm down!" a third voice called in a hushed tone.

" _Yeah Raph_. You're _way_ too hot-headed." Mikey cood.

"Michelangelo!” the third voice snapped “Raph is right, you know. This is supposed to be _stealth training_."

They stepped out into the moonlight to reveal three humanoid-turtles, each wielding a weapon and wearing a belt, knee and elbow pads, and a different coloured bandanna.

"Sorry Leo. I got a bit carried away...” Mikey, the one in orange wielded twin nunchaku, apologised before frowning, “Uh, wait a second…where's Donny? Wasn't he with you?" he asked, causing the one in blue, with twin katanas, to tense up.

"He was right behind me a minute ago..." Leo frowned as he looked behind him, but seemed to stay calm, “I hope nothing happened to him.”

"What if he was abducted by... _aliens_..." Mikey asked dramatically, his hands on his cheeks.

SMACK!

"Ow...Raph! What was that for?" Mikey glared at the Raph, in red with twin sais, as he rubbed the back of his head.

"For being a bonehead." Raph stated matter-of-factly.

"What? We've had actual invasions before..." Mikey pouted sourly.

Raph facepalmed and Leo just shook his head.

"Mikey, you read way too many comics.” Leo groaned, “Come on we need to look for Don. Raph you cover in that direction and-"

"Mikey! Leo! Raph! Look what I found!" a voice interrupted them.

"Donny!" a trio of relieved voices answered back.

A turtle in purple, with a wooden bō staff, joined the other turtles.

"You guys have to see this..." he pulled out a small, cloth-wrapped bundle, “My radar was picking up some strange energy readings that kept on stopping and reappearing at random...”

The bundle seemed to vibrate in his hands for a few seconds, before settling again.

“When I went to investigate, it turned out to be...whatever this is.”

He undid the bindings and wrappings, revealing a small silver medallion. On the face of it was a delicate, almost calligraphy-like design of a flame in red.

“Oooh...” Mikey exclaimed as he moved closer for a better look, “What do you think it is?”

“No idea.” Donny shook his head, “I’d like to get it to the lab as soon as possible.”

The medallion started glowing softly as it started vibrating again, causing Mikey to shriek in a comical way.

“Hmmm...” Leo frowned, “Odd...”

The vibration and glow had barely subsided when it started again, more powerful than the previous time.

“It’s getting more frequent...” Donny mused, “And more powerful...”

“Are you sure this is safe?” Leo wondered.

“I’m not sure...”

The pulses of glow and vibration kept on increasing in frequency and intensity. The brothers readied their weapons as the medallion as they watched a figure emerging…

* * *

**Meanwhile, somewhere near the border of Land of Fire...**

'I'm getting so sick of this! I wonder if I'll ever have a normal life...'

A young woman in her early twenties was running through a forest as her shoulder length silvery-white hair whipped in the wind behind her.

' _Seriously_? Is fate out to get me or something?!'

She dived into some shrubs and with a quick roll came to halt in a crouching position. A second later four shadows whizzed past. She remained crouched for about three minutes before relaxing.

‘That was way too close for comfort.’ she thought with a suppressed sigh, 'Thank goodness I learnt how to suppress my chakra...’

She wiped her forehead before settling down into a crouch, and remained like that for a few minutes as she got her breathing under control.

‘Well, looks like I'm safe for the moment so I better make the most of it.'

She silently stalked out of her hiding spot and moved as quietly as she could while avoiding a series of carefully set up traps. She suddenly felt a tiny chakra spike followed by a small shuffle and a twig snapping behind her.

'Oh, just _great_...Orochimaru’s suck ups sure don't let up.'

Picking up her pace, she failed to see the trip wire in front of her, and her face had an incredibly unpleasant meeting with the ground.

"Over there! In the wire traps!" a voice shouted from behind a big tree.

'Ah crap!'

Managing to get up, she jumped up into the closest tree.

'Whaa...Why am I so clumsy?!' she almost cried, ‘For goodness sake, woman, you’re a bloody ninja!!’ she berated herself.

Jumping to the next branch, she slipped and had a second hard meeting with the ground. She winced as she pushed herself up and braced herself for the wrath of the Sound-nin on her tail. Just then she noticed a tree in front of her was hollow and scrambled inside.

'Guess this is the best I can do for now...'

She ran her fingers over the soft soil and felt something cold.

'Huh...what's this?'

She picked up the piece of metal and nearly gasped when she saw the design, but remembered not to give her location away.

‘I feel like I’ve seen this somewhere…’ she frowned.

As she turned it over to inspect it more, it started vibrating in her hands. Her surroundings began to fade away as she felt herself drift into unconsciousness…

* * *

The glow died down, and the emerging figure turned out to be an unconscious young slender woman with shoulder length, silvery-white hair. She was dressed in mostly black, a sleeveless top, three quarter pants and open toe boots. A small bag was strapped to her right leg.

“Oh...it’s a...girl...” Mikey gave a relieved sighed.

Donny frowned as he moved closer to her, noting that she was covered in light cuts, scratches, bruises and dirt.

“She looks like she got beaten up.” Donny frowned “I wonder what happened to her.”

“Looks like she’s been through hell...” Leo murmured.

“Poor thing. Who the heck even does this to a girl?” Mikey frowned as he knelt down next to her. He suddenly shrieked, causing everyone to jump. Raph was just about to whack him over the head when he realised that Mikey was pointing at her in an overly excited manner.

“LOOK GUYS!!” he exclaimed, “LOOK WHAT SHE’S HOLDING!!”

Upon closer inspection, they found that she was holding a small metal object.

“It’s the same medallion...” Raph noted when he took the object from her hand “So was she transported here through it?”

“It’s highly possible.” Donny agreed.

A small groan came from the girl, and she mumbled lightly. As soon as she opened her dark grey eyes, she practically flew to the opposite side of the roof, landing in a defensive stance.

 _“Anta, dare?!”_ **[1]** she demanded sounding extremely suspicious.

“Heh?” Mikey quipped, “What she say?”

The other three visibly deflated and stared at Mikey in utter disbelief.

“Mikey.” Raph hissed through his teeth, “How? JUST HOW THE HELL DO YOU STILL NOT UNDERSTAND THE MOST BASIC OF JAPANESE?”

“Don’t you pay any attention to Sensei's lessons?” Donny facepalmed

“Uh...” Mikey grinned nervously, “S-sometimes?”

 _“Ano....sumimasen...”_ **[2]** the girl spoke again, seeming a bit more relaxed as she looked them over in confusion.

 _“Hai?”_ Leo aked.

 _“Ano...dare ka? Eto...nani ka?”_ she asked.

“Eh...that was...” Mikey nudged his brothers.

“Guess it can’t be helped.” Raph sighed and begrudgingly started translating, “She asked _‘Who are you? Or rather...what are you?’_ .”

 _“Isn’t it more polite to introduce yourself first?”_ Leo asked her, causing her to bow her head in slight shame.

 _“Right...”_ she murmured _“My name is Seiji Yuki.”_ **[3]**

_“Please to met you Seiji-san. I’m Hamato Leonardo, and these are my brothers...”_ he pointed to the three behind him, _“Donatello, Raphael and Michaelangelo.”_

“Hi!” Mikey waved

 _"Uh...actually just Yuki is fine."_ She smiled nervously, _"And what exactly are you guys?"_

 _“We’re mutated turtles.”_ Donny explained, and when she perked up at the answer he added, _“It’s a long story. A VERY long story.”_

“Ask her what happened!” Mikey whispered impatiently.

 _“Ah...your scars...”_ Leo started, a little unsure how to broach the subject, _“What happened to you?”_

 _"Oh, these?"_ she asked as she only now seemed to notice how bad she looked, _"I managed to escape from the facility Orochimaru had imprisoned me."_

_"Orochimaru?"_

_"He’s a trairtor...a missing nin...bloody cold hearted bastard who would do anything to get what he wants, mostly through experimenting on others..."_ she placed her hand over her heart as her eyes started tearing up, _"...and because of my naiveness, I'm marked for life..."_

"Sounds an awful lot like a certain agent we know..." Raph grumbled.

 _“I almost didn’t make it...”_ she sighed _“Orochimaru’s cronies had me backed into a corner. I found this...this thing...and the next thing I knew I woke up here...”_

 _“You mean this?”_ Donny asked as he held up the identical medallions.

 _“Yeah...”_ she nodded.

 _“Donny found one of them earlier, and you appeared shortly after.”_ Leo explained, _“We believe it might have transported you here.”_

 _“I see...”_ she murmured. _“Where is ‘here’, anyway?”_

 _“Manhattan, in New York City.”_ Leo stated

 _“Uh...”_ she gave him a questioning look.

_“In the United States of America...”_

_“...”_ her expression became more puzzled

_“...Earth...”_

_“Ok...”_ she frowned, “ _So how far away is this from the Land of Fire?_ ”

 _“Land of Fire?”_ Leo gave her a questioning look “ _I’ve never heard of it..._ ”

_“Crap.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **[1]**  
>  Anta dare?! (あんた誰?!)  
> A somewhat rude and forceful way of saying "Who are you?".  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  Sumimasen (すみません)  
> An extremely versatile Japanese word meaning somewhere along the lines of “sorry”, “excuse me” or "pardon me".  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  Yuki Seiji (清治 雪 _Seiji Yuki_ )
> 
> Yuki (雪) means _snow_  
>  Seiji (清治) means _refreshing/pure/clean_ **+** _rule/govern_  
> Back


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a small warning: THERE WILL BE A LOT OF FOOTNOTES.  
> For a variety of reasons, but for now it's mostly Japanese related stuff ( _mostly due to the fact that Yuki can, for the moment, understand ONLY Japanese._ )
> 
> Japanese can be somewhat hard to translate due to the distinct difference between Keigo ( _Formal/Respectful Japanese_ ) and Tame-go ( _Informal Japanese_ ). Especially since verbs can be conjugated to change between the forms of formality. This can make it very hard to write dialog for characters speaking Japanese, as English as it's spoken today doesn't really have much of a distinct difference between formal and non-formal speech as it did in the past. Though, I will at least try and make everything that supposed to be in Keigo sound more formal than Non-Keigo ( _without making it sound tacky and weird_ ).
> 
> Then there are also some Japanese gestures and body language that would rarely be seen outside of Japan, which might fly right over Western readers' heads if I try to use them to convey specific social cues or emotions without at least some form of explanation.

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1: Snowfall

Chapter 2

* * *

“Isn’t she here yet?” Mikey whined.

“Mikey, I swear, if ya don’t shut ya trap…”

“But she’s taking sooo loooong!” Mikey pouted

Mikey managed to duck in time before his brother whacked him over the head.

“ _Are they always like this?_ ” Yuki asked Donny who was currently dabbing disinfectant on some of her wounds. Donny just sighed heavily in response.

“ _They sure are lively, aren’t they?_ ” she smiled softly as she watched Mikey run across the small alleyway with Raph in hot pursuit.

“ _I suppose that’s one way to look at it._ ” Donny agreed, “ _They do tend to lift the mood with their antics._ ”

“ _Though, I do hope they keep it down._ ” Leo sighed, “ _It’ll be bad if we get spotted._ ”

“ _Are you guys in hiding or something?_ ” Yuki asked

“ _Not quite, ‘in hiding’, perse._ ” he answered, “ _Let’s just say we have a hard time fitting in, being walking, talking turtles and all._ ”

“ _Ah…_ ” she frowned “ _So then I take that talking animals is much rarer here than they are back home?_ ”

“ _They’re common where you are from?_ ” Donny asked with intrigue as he started applying bandages on the larger wounds.

“ _Somewhat._ ” she nodded, “ _The ones who don’t have summoning contracts with shinobi **[1]** mostly keep to themselves though. _”

“ _Summoning contracts?_ ” Leo asked

“ _Yeah, some shinobi summon them in battle, while others are used to send messages._ ” she explained. 

“ _Interesting._ ” Leo murmured “ _That really sounds like a place I’d like to visit someday._ ”

“ _There we go._ ” Donny said as he finished up his first aid care, “ _That should do it._ ”

“ _Arigatou gozaimasu **[2]** , Donatello-san._” she thanked the turtle as she looked over his patch job, “ _Say, Leonardo-san...what is your friend like?_ ”

“ _Hmmm…_ ” Leo frowned in concentration, “ _She can be quite intense, as her namesake, but don’t let that fool you. You’ll find she’s actually quite a sweetheart once you get to know her well._ ”

“ _Oh, am I now?_ ” Karai asked as she stepped out of the shadows, “ _You know it’s rude to talk about people behind their backs, right?_ ” 

Yuki couldn’t help but feel slightly intimidated by the woman that had just appeared. She had a certain air of elegance that one would usually associate with royalty.

‘I see what they meant by “intense”...’ Yuki thought to herself  **[3]**

“ _I’m kidding, I’m kidding!_ ” Karai reassured before walking over to Yuki, “ _So, you must be the one Leo mentioned?_ ”

“ _Ah, hajimemshite **[4]** . _ ” Yuki bowed deeply before continuing, “ _I’m Seiji Yuki. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu **[5]** ._”

“ _Hajimemshite._ ” Karai smiled before giving Yuki a bow in return, “ _I am Oroku Karai **[6]** ._”

“ _Well, then...I guess we’ll see each other later._ ” Leo greeted.

“ _Likewise._ ” Yuki smiled as she waved them off.

The rest of the turtles greeted them as well before they all started parkouring out of the alleyway and out of sight.

“ _Come along then._ ” Karai gestured before leading Yuki to an armoured van parked down the street.

Inside, a bespectacled man with flaming red hair was waiting and looked up from the book he held in his hands, curiously inspecting the new arrival as she got inside.

“ _This is Dr. Chaplin._ ” Karai introduced him

“ _Hello._ ” he greeted cheerfully.

Yuki couldn't help but stare at the interior of the car in awe. She was no stranger to technology, but this was far beyond anything she’d ever seen.

“ _Is something wrong?_ ” Karai asked

 _“No…_ ” Yuki shook her head, “ _I’ve never seen technology this advanced before…_ ”

“ _Oh?_ ” Chaplin sounded intrigued by her answer, “ _Are you from a rural village or something?_ ”

“ _Chaplin!_ ” Karai scolded him.

“ _Oh, no it’s ok._ ” Yuki reassured, “ _I suppose you can say where I’m from is pretty rural...._ ”

“ _I see._ ” Chaplin nodded, “ _In that case, if you ever run across any tech related problems or questions, I’m more than happy to help you as best I can._ ”

“ _Ah…_ ” she grinned sheepishly as she scratched the back of her head  **[7]** , “ _You don’t have to trouble yourself._ "

“ _Nonsense._ ” he countered _“I can’t let someone be troubled if it can be helped._ ”

“ _I see…_ ” she smiled, “ _In that case, thank you very much, Chaplin-san._ ”

She sat down in a seat and Karai showed her how to strap in before taking her own seat next to Chaplin. The van pulled away and they all travelled in silence for a while. Yuki noted the writing on the cover of the book Chaplin was once again reading, and wondered what language it was in.

“ _Eigo._ ” Chaplin answered her unspoken question, “ _Or_ ‘English’ _, as they call it in their own language._ ”

“ _Oh...I see._ ”

“ _I can teach you, if you want._ ” he said grinning.

“ _Ah…no-._ ” she started, but Chaplin held up a hand to silence her.

“ _I honestly don’t mind, so don’t worry too much about it._ ” he reassured, “ _Like I said, I can’t leave people troubled._ ”

* * *

“I see” Splinter mused after listening to the retelling of what had transpired earlier that night, “Where is she now?”

“With Karai.” Leo answered “We didn’t know if it was safe to bring her here.”

“I see.” Splinter nodded

“You know, it didn’t look like she was scared of us being turtles and all.” Mikey added

“Actually, she did mention that where she comes from, sentient animals are somewhat common.” Donny recalled, “Apparently they sometimes make summoning contracts with the shinobi there.”

“Wait, really?” Raph asked, stunned

“That’s totally awesome!” Mikey exclaimed

“She sounds like an interesting young woman.” Splinter mused “I would very much like to meet her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is virtually no information about Chaplin's full name, which I find immensely frustrating. Because he is referred to as "Dr. Chaplin", I will go by the assumption that it's his last name. For my own sanity’s sake, I've decided to give him the first name Zachary, after Zachary Mastoon who voiced him in the series...
> 
>  **[1]**  
>  'Shinobi' is another way to say 'Ninja', and both mean "One who endures" or "One who is patient"  
> The reason for this phenomenon of two words meaning the exact same thing is because of how Kanji _("Chinese character")_ got introduced to Japan by the Chinese. Kanji almost always has a different 'Original Chinese reading' _(On'yomi)_ to the 'Japanese reading _(Kun'yomi)_.  
> In this case the word Endurance/Stamina/Patience (忍), has an _On'yomi_ reading of 'nin' and a _Kun'yomi_ reading of 'shinobu'  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  Arigatou (ありがとう) and Arigatou gozaimasu (ありがとうございます):  
> Both phrases mean "Thank you". Arigatou gozaimasu is Keigo ( _formal speech_ ) and Arigatou is Tame-go ( _informal speech_ )  
> The difference can be translated in English as _arigatou gozaimasu_ meaning "thank you very much", while _arigatou_ would be just "thanks"  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  As per Leo's earlier comment, Karai (辛い) literally means "painful", "bitter" or "harsh".  
> Back
> 
>  **[4]**  
>  Hajimemashite (はじめまして):  
> lit. “It is the first time (meeting you)”, but generally interpreted as “Nice to meet you”  
> Back
> 
>  **[5]**  
>  Yoroshiku onegaishimasu (よろしくお願いします):  
> lit. “Please treat me kindly”, but can be interpreted as a variety of things, such as: “Let’s get along well”, ”Thank you for putting up with me”, ”I’m indebted to you”.  
> Back
> 
>  **[6]**  
>  Yes, I know she’s referred to as Karai Saki in the 2003 series, but I feel like this was an oversight by 4Kids!, who didn’t completely grasp the etiquette regarding Japanese names. In all the comics where she’s related to Oroku Saki in some manner, she’s known as Oroku Karai, which means that both she and Saki use the Japanese standard of presenting their family name first. It’s also considered more polite to use family names in general. It can be seen as overly familiar or rude to call someone by their first name if A) you’re not actually really close and B) they didn’t ask you to use their first name instead.  
> Back
> 
>  **[7]**  
>  A common Japanese gesture that usually indicates embarrassment or confusion.  
> Back


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to [ACSkywalker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACSkywalker) and [ErenCJaeger](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErenCJaeger/) for Beta reading :D

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 3

* * *

Opening her eyes, Yuki found herself lying in a grassy clearing.

She took a deep breath and focused on the sounds of the soft breeze, birds and cicadas for a moment before sitting up. The surrounding forest was bright green, just as it had been since the first time she appeared here.

For reasons beyond her understanding, this place had always filled her with peace.

“It’s been a while.” a voice behind her spoke.

The figure wore a white, hooded cloak and a clay wolf mask.

“Yeah…” she sighed.

Takara  **[1]** , or at least that’s what he called himself, had been appearing to her in her dreams like this for years now, though she couldn't recall when exactly it started.

“Your aura has changed…” he noted, “Don’t tell me that bastard started experimenting on you again.”

“Oh, yeah about that…” she jumped up, ecstatically pumping her fists in the air, “I managed to escape!”

“You...WHAT?!” he exclaimed, “How? Just how in the world did you manage that?!”

“After the failed chunin exams, things were a little chaotic, I saw an opportunity and I took it. Everyone was so focused on that Uchiha kid that Orochimaru is planning to use as his next vessel that I managed to catch a lucky break and make a run for it.”

“Oh…”

“Almost didn’t end well, though. ” she shuddered, “Luckily, I found this amulet thingy, and it teleported me somewhere safe...well, for the time being at least.”

“An amulet?” he mused.

“Yeah...” she nodded, “A silver medallion with a flame-like symbol on it. Though I swear I’ve seen it before.”

“The Walker symbol...” he started mumbling, just loud enough for Yuki to pick up, “...could it be that they are somehow involved...”

“What?”

“Did I say that out loud?” Takara asked, before waving his hand in front of himself, almost as if he was swatting an imaginary bug  **[2]** “Don’t mind me, I’m just thinking out loud.”

“Yeah, _right_!” she gave him a glare, now somewhat suspicious of him, “So...you know what is going on, don’t you?”

“N-nothing! I said nothing!” he countered, now furiously waving his hands about in an almost comical manner.

“Nothing, my fucking ass, Takara.” she snapped, “What do you know about this?”

“Nothing at all!” he countered, managing to sound even more suspicious.

“Takara, tell me what you’re hiding from me.” she demanded furiously.

“Uh..” he laughed nervously before shouting “BYE!”

“Oi, don’t you dare!” She jumped up to try and catch him, but her surroundings quickly faded, and she found herself back in Karai’s guest room.

Fuming, she flopped back on the bed.

‘The fucking prick’ she thought angrily.

It was still dark out, so she decided against the idea of getting up, as she didn’t want to risk waking up her hosts. Lying back down she tried to see if she could get back to sleep, to no avail.

Takara’s sudden change in behaviour really put her on edge. She had known him for years, but had never seen him do anything like what he just did.

‘Can I still even trust him?’ she wondered.

Soft sounds caught her attention, prompting her to investigate. She got up, and stepping as lightly and quietly as possible, made her way out of the room. She found the source of the sounds to be Chaplin, in the kitchen making a pot of tea.

“ _Good morning, Chaplin-san._ ” she greeted the man.

“ _Morning._ ” he greeted her back, sounding like he was still half asleep, “ _Did I wake you?_ ”

“ _Not at all._ ” she shook her head before scowling, “ _Something else did._ ”

“ _Nightmares?_ ”

“ _No, just something really annoying._ ” she sighed irritably.

“ _Ah._ ”

He placed the steaming teapot on a tray with three teacups and carried it to the low table in the lounge area. Yuki followed suit and went to sit at the table.

“ _So, anything you fancy?_ ” he asked as he sat down after her.

“ _What?_ ”

“ _For food, I mean._ ” he explained, pouring tea in two of the cups, “ _Anything you prefer, and any allergies we should be aware of?_ ”

“ _Oh...no allergies._ ” she shook her head, “ _I eat pretty much anything._ ”

“ _Are you just saying that out of courteousness?_ ” he challenged in a joking manner as he handed her a cup of steaming tea.

“ _I’m really not fussy._ ” she reassured with a small smile as she took the cup he offered. She noted scent of rice as she lifted the cup to her lips, “ _Genmaicha?_ ”  **[3]**

He nodded in confirmation before smiling “ _Ok, just making sure. Do you have any favourites?_ ”

“ _I suppose I do like hotpots._ ” she smiled, albeit sadly, “ _And I’d do practically anything to have some of my mom’s cooking again._ ” 

“ _You don’t see her often?_ ” he asked.

“ _She died a very long time ago._ ”

“ _Oh…_ ” Chaplin faltered, “ _I’m...sorry._ ”

“ _It’s alright._ ” she smiled sadly, “ _It’s been almost 10 years now._ ”

“ _That long, huh?_ ” he pondered, “ _I hope it wasn’t too rough._ ”

“ _It’s been...ok…_ ” she sighed.

“ _Hm…_ ” he gave her a calculating look

“ _And that look?_ ” she enquired with a raised eyebrow.

“ _I can tell that you’ve lived through quite some hardship._ ” he admitted before smiling kindly, “ _Don’t worry. I won’t push you, but I do want you to know that I’m willing to listen if you ever feel the need to talk about your troubles._ ”

He held up his hand in a gesture before she could argue.

“ _I know that, knowing your culture, you have the mindset of ‘don’t trouble others’, but in my honest opinion, while it’s good to be considerate, I feel that it’s completely unhealthy to bottle up and hide all your problems to the point where you hurt yourself._ ”

“ _Ah...ok…_ ” she smiled softly. He had a point.

“ _Pestering our guest first thing in the morning, I see._ ” Karai had appeared in the doorway, giving Chaplin a warning look.

“ _Hey, I’m not pestering, ok?_ ” he held his hands up in defence “ _I just offered my ear in case she wanted to talk._ ”

“ _Maybe he’s right._ ” Yuki murmured “ _Talking about stuff might actually help…_ ”

Karai gave them both a calculating look as she joined them at the low table, while Chaplin poured her a cup of tea.

“ _My father died when I was a baby._ ” Yuki sighed “ _My mother died from an illness when I was 13._ ”

“ _You’ve been alone for a long time, haven’t you?_ ” Karai murmured as she recollected her own grim childhood, “ _Being an orphan can be rough._ ”

 _“It wasn’t as bad as it could get, I suppose._ ” Yuki contemplated, “ _And I wasn’t quite alone. I had...a friend of sorts._ ”

‘Well, that’s if I can still consider that moron my friend after what he pulled this morning.’ she thought sourly.

“ _Although, I did get involved with the wrong people at some point, so there’s that._ ” Yuki grumbled.

Chaplin and Karai gave her an odd stare.

“ _Let’s just say I got tricked by a conniving snake._ ” she narrowed her eyes, “ _I was naive enough to trust the bastard, and got hurt._ ”

“ _Life hasn’t exactly been kind to you, has it._ ” Chaplin sighed.

“ _I suppose not._ ” she murmured ,“ _But hopefully things will be better now._ ”

“ _I’m sure it will._ ” Chaplin agreed, “ _We’ll make sure of it!_ ”

“ _Thank you...._ ” she smiled softly as she finished her tea, “ _You were right when you said ‘talking helps’_.”

“ _Glad to hear that._ ” Chaplin grinned.

* * *

A young woman, wearing a white saree with blue accents, was sitting on the cushioned floor cross legged, in the middle of a large lounge area in what looked like a penthouse, as she furiously typed something on a small electronic device. Her chocolate brown skin was covered in dark blue tribal tattoos while her shoulder length hair was dyed in various shades of blue, the curls ranging from aqua to indigo. When she noticed a young man, wearing a tattered black coat and dark trousers, with dark brown, albeit sun bleached hair, and several facial scars walking past, she narrowed her dark brown eyes.

“I feel bad for Kohaku and Tashi.” she stated irritably, a subtle French accent audible in her voice, before dropping into a tone dripping with sarcasm, “Having a boss as _incompetent_ as Alex _sure_ must _suck_.”

“Oi!” the young man exclaimed. He narrowed his eyes at her in annoyance, which had an odd combination of blue and brown, and grumbled, “I’m not _that_ bad.”

“I’m inclined to agree with Kaimana on this one.” another young woman stated as she poked her head around the archway leading into the kitchen, with red highlighted, medium length, dark blonde hair. She narrowed her bright aqua eyes at him, “I mean, _how_ did you even lose track of them like that? Huh, Alex?”

“See?” Kaimana scoffed nonchalantly as she gestured towards the newcomer “Even Belinda agrees!”

“Et tu, Brute?” Alex whimpered in an almost comical manner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **[1]**  
>  Takara (宝) means "treasure".  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  The "Waving your hand as if you're swatting a bug in front of your face" motion is a Japanese gesture that means somewhere along the lines of: “No that’s not true” or "You've made the wrong assumption".  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  Genmaicha (玄米茶), also called “Popcorn tea”, is a Japanese form of green tea combined with roasted/popped brown rice. It has a slight earthy/nutty aroma to it.  
> Personally it’s one of my favourites, although Aidan thinks it tastes weird.  
> Back


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks to [ErenCJaeger](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErenCJaeger/) and [ACSkywalker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACSkywalker) for Beta reading.
> 
> Apologies for how long this chapter took. No matter what I did I couldn’t get the flow right.
> 
> Despite how much I struggled with this particular chapter, I managed to sort out the majority of the key plot points that will be unfolding later in the series, which in turn helped negate some of the issues in this chapter, so I guess it worked out ok.

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 4

* * *

A young girl of seemingly Inuit descent, wearing an oversized cat onesie, could be found sitting on a mountain of pillows, at the edge of a small lounge area in the middle of an enormous library, towering bookcases stretching out in every direction. Next to the girl was a small control panel with holographic screens, an almost impossible amount of information scrolling past. Enchanted books came and went, as the girl summoned and dismissed them, otherwise rearranging themselves.

A few paces from her, Alex, Kaimana and Belinda were sitting on one of the plush couches, waiting for her to finish whatever she was currently doing. After a few minutes the girl sighed irritably and looked up at the other three.

“Aaand, nothing...absolutely nothing...”

“WHAT?!” Belinda and Kaimana practically shouted in unison. 

“Sachi…” Belinda frowned, “...are you saying that you, _of all people,_ can’t find them?” 

“Besides that one spike in power earlier, nada.” Sachi shrugged.

“See?” Alex quipped pointing at Sachi “If even _she_ can’t find them, is it really me being incompetent?”

“I suppose not.” Kaimana sighed.

“I wouldn’t say that you _aren’t_ incompetent, given some of the crap you’ve pulled before.” Sachi gave him a slight glare, causing him to sink back into his seat.

* * *

“My name is Seiji Yuki.” Yuki spoke, still being unfamiliar with the pronunciation, her words sounded slightly strained.

 _“Pretty good.”_ Chaplin grinned before adding _“Although, most English speaking people use their family name last, so I’d recommend that you rather do that to avoid confusion.”_

 _“I see...”_ Yuki mused, “My name is Yuki Seiji?”

_“Exactly.”_

She was just about to ask Chaplin something when there was a knock on the door.

“Yes?” Chaplin responded.

 _“We have visitors.”_ Karai’s voice came from the other side.

 _“I suppose that’ll conclude today’s lesson then.”_ Chaplin stated before getting up, _“Please go through the exercises I gave you on your own.”_

 _“Understood.”_ she nodded, _“Thank you for today’s lesson, Chaplin-sensei.”_

For a moment, Chaplin looked like he was about to argue her use of his last name, but thought better of it and left the room.

Yuki couldn't help but smile to herself as she gathered up her work materials and placed everything in a binder. The progress in her English wasn’t a lot given that she’d only started lessons earlier that week, but Chaplin reassured her that she was learning fast.

After putting all her learning tools away, she headed to the lounge, where she found the turtles. With them was a large humanoid rat who she assumed were the adoptive father they had briefly mentioned.

As soon as he spotted her, Mikey waved at her in an excited manner, “Hey, Yuki!”

When she reached the group, Leonardo gestured towards the rat, _“This is our father.”_

_“I am Hamato Splinter.”_ he greeted her, _“You must be Seiji Yuki.”_

 _“Hajimemashite.”_ she greeted back.

Mikey sighed heavily as he watched his father and brothers converse with Yuki.

“Something wrong?” Chaplin asked him.

“I’m literally the only one here that can’t understand her.” Mikey grumbled, “I really should have put more effort into Japanese.”

“She seems to be learning English really fast, so it won’t be too long until she’ll be able to understand you.” Chaplin reassured, “Though, if you’re struggling with learning Japanese, maybe I can help?”

“Really?” Mikey practically beamed, “That would be awesome!”

“Though in the meantime, rather than stressing over a conversation you probably won’t understand, why not help prepare some refreshments?” Chaplin offered.

“Sure.” Mikey nodded, following Chaplin to the kitchen.

 _“The countries you mentioned…”_ Donny mentioned while frowning, _“We tried looking for them, but no luck so far.”_

 _“It’s alright....”_ Yuki sighed heavily, before shrugging a bit, _“But, I suppose the further away I’m from that psychopath, the better.”_

 _“The one who held you captive?”_ Splinter asked.

 _“Orochimaru, yes.”_ she nodded, _“Once a great man, according to the stories my mother told me as a child. I knew who he was when I met him, but didn’t expect one of the Legendary Sannin to be so twisted.”_

 _“Legendary Sannin?”_ **[1]**

_“Orochimaru, and his teammates, Jiraya and Tsunade, received the title after managing to survive the battle against Hanzō of the Salamander during the Second Shinobi War.”_

There was suddenly an awkward silence as Splinter, the turtles, and Karai gave her an odd look.

 _“Jiraya, Tsunade and Orochimaru?” Karai asked, “The main characters in ‘Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari’?”_ **[2]**

_“Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari?_ ” Yuki seemed confused, _“I’ve never heard of it.”_

Splinter and the turtles shared a confused look as Karai got up.

 _“Give me a moment.”_ she stated as she walked to a bookcase nearby. Quickly scanning through, she picked up one of the books and flipped through it before walking back and placing the open book before Yuki, _“Here you go.”_

Yuki pulled the book closer, her frown increasing the more she read. She pushed the book away as she finished, silent, as she seemed to process everything.

After a few moments she sighed and looked up.

 _“The only similarities I can see to this,”_ she pointed to the book, _“are the animals they summon and the fact that Orochimaru turned out to be a self-obsessed jackass.”_

 _“Shinobi summoning animals…”_ Leo murmured, _“You mentioned that when we met as well.”_

 _“Ah, yes.”_ Yuki nodded.

 _“I’d love to know more about it.”_ Donny exclaimed, before clearing his throat awkwardly, _“Well, if you don’t mind, of course.”_

Yuki suppressed a giggle over the young turtle’s childlike excitement. It had been a long time since she’d seen someone so genuinely interested about something. In fact, he reminded her of herself when she started learning ninjutsu.

Mikey and Chaplin returned with a tray of cups and a steaming pot of tea.

“So did I miss anything cool?” Mikey asked as he started pouring tea.

“Apparently that Orochimaru guy who held her prisoner has an incredibly strong resemblance to this weirdo snake guy from ancient Japanese folklore.” Raph filled his brother in, holding up the book, as the latter passed him a cup of tea, “And his former teammates also resemble two other characters from the same story.”

“From the ‘Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya’?” Chaplin hummed.

“Weird…” Mikey murmured, before pointing at Donny, “Any idea why he’s so excited?”

Donny and Yuki were sitting on the other end of the lounge, in what seemed to be a conversation of some sort. As Mikey had pointed out, Donatello looked like a child in a candy store, eagerly listening to whatever Yuki was saying.

“Yo Donny!” Raph called, “So, what got yer tail wagging?”

“Remember how she talked about shinobi in her world summoning animals?” Donny asked to which his brothers nodded, “It would appear that she has a summoning contract.”

“No way!” Mikey exclaimed.

 _“Do you mind showing us?”_ Splinter asked Yuki.

She started to nod, but then faltered suddenly.

 _“Is there a problem?”_ Donny asked.

 _“Well...it’s just…”_ she faltered, before whispering something.

 _“Oh...”_ Donny mused before chuckling, _“Don’t worry, he won’t mind.”_

 _“Really?”_ she asked, seemingly unconvinced, _“I mean, even though he’s a rat?”_

 _“Yes, really.”_ he reassured, _“Mikey even has one as a pet, and he’s ok with it.”_

 _“Oh?”_ she seemed highly amused, before getting up and moving to an open space in the apartment lounge.

“She’s going to show us?” Mikey asked with intrigue, “Do you know what she’ll summon?”

“Oh, you’ll see.” Donny winked at his brother.

Yuki bit into her left thumb, hard enough to draw blood. She then proceeded to smear blood onto the right palm, and after weaving a series of hand seals, slammed her right hand onto the floor, _“Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”_ **[3]**

In a puff of smoke, a rather small, fluffy black cat with striking green eyes appeared.

 _“Hey Miki.”_ Yuki greeted the cat

 _“Yo, Yuki.”_ Miki greeted with one paw in the air, _“Long time no see.”_

There was a slight awkward silence, as everyone stared at the cat who had literally just appeared out of thin air.

 _“Uh...where are we even?”_ Miki asked curiously, _“The smells are all different.”_

 _“No idea.”_ Yuki shrugged.

 _“Are you serious?”_ Miki gave her a deadpan look, _“And who the heck are these guys?”_

“The turtle guys found me after I escaped from Orochimaru, an-”

 _“Wait...you escaped?!”_ Miki stared at her in utter surprise, _“How?!”_

 _“It’s kindof a long story.”_ she shrugged, _“Anyway, these people have been helping me since I’ve arrived here.”_

_“Ah…”_

“Yuki is officially the coolest person ever...” Mikey gushed as he stared at her in absolute awe.

“For once I agree with Bonehead.” Raph smirked, “That’s pretty awesome.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I changed the initial plot to have Yuki stay with Karai and Chaplin instead of the turtles right off the bat like I did in the old version of Ninja Tales, I went and rewatched pretty much all the episodes where Chaplin appears to write him in character. Quite frankly, I never realised how freaking awesome and absolutely hilarious he actually is. I can totally see him being an adorkable, doting dad one day.
> 
> If anyone was wondering what Yuki is supposed to look like, I made her in Sims 4 and also drew a quick sketch:  
> 
> 
>  **[1]**  
>  _Sannin_ (三忍) means "Three Ninja". The original title given to the team in the Japanese version was _Densetsu no Sannin_ (伝説の三忍), literally meaning "Legendary Three Ninja"  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  Masashi Kishimoto drew a lot of inspiration from folklore when he wrote Naruto, and the three characters, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru, are no exception.  
> They come from a folktale called _Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari_ (児雷也豪傑物語; “The Heroic Tales of Jiraiya” or “Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya”). If you're interested in the folktale, you can read a version [here](https://www.wattpad.com/264381159-japan%27s-folklore-stories-jiraiya-g%C5%8Dketsu) or watch [this animation by Linfamy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW8OKP8aZjc)  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  _Kuchiyose no Jutsu_ (口寄せの術) means “Art of Summoning”  
> Back


	6. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks to [ErenCJaeger](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErenCJaeger/) and [ACSkywalker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACSkywalker) for Beta reading.
> 
> Also extra thanks to ErenCJaeger for letting me know my footnote links were not behaving as they are intended. I've redefined all the link id tags to include the chapter numbers, so hopefully everything should work properly now.

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 5

* * *

Yawning, Chaplin was making his way to the kitchen when he noticed a light flickering in the lounge.

“Odd…” he frowned as he decided to investigate.

Upon entering the lounge, he found Yuki with her head resting over a book on the coffee table. From the looks of it, she had fallen asleep while studying English.

“Geez, Yuki, you don’t have to overdo it…” he sighed as he walked over towards her.

She whimpered slightly, causing the lamp next to her to flicker once more.

“Is this her doing?” he muttered.

 _“Yuki?”_ he asked in a gentle whisper, _“Are you alright?”_

He knelt down next to her to try and wake her gently when he noted something akin to flames spreading across her neck and arms, manifesting small crescent shaped, tattoo-like markings.

“Okaay... _that’s_ not normal.”

He went back to his and Karai’s bedroom quickly, hoping that she might know what to do.

“Hmmm?” she mumbled when he tapped her awake, giving him a half tired glare.

“It’s Yuki…” he frowned, “There’s something wrong.”

“What do you mean?” she narrowed her eyes as she quickly jumped out of bed.

“I don’t even know where to start...it’s just really weird.” he sighed as they made their way to the lounge

“Weird how?” Karai asked as she followed him.

“Weird like that.” he stated, pointing in Yuki’s direction when they entered the lounge

“I...see...”

As she approached Yuki, her expression changed to one of absolute disgust.

“What’s wrong?”

“This aura…” she grimaced, “It’s absolutely nauseating.”

“So...what do we do?” he asked nervously. 

“I’m going to have to do a mind delve.”

“You know that’s dangerous.” Chaplin narrowed his eyes, “We don’t even know what’s wrong.”

“I know.” she nodded, “But I don’t think just waking her up is wise. And who knows what could happen if we leave her like that.”

“True.”

She knelt down next to Yuki, and gently placed one hand on her forehead and the other over her back. Focusing herself, she slipped into a semi-meditative state. A few moments later, Karai winced in pain.

“Karai!” Chaplin called out in concern.

“I’m okay…” she weakly answered.

The light flickering subsided, and Yuki jolted awake.

 _“K-karai-san?”_ she stammered before noting Chaplin’s presence as well, _“Zachary-san?”_

 _“Pardon the intrusion.”_ Chaplin grinned nervously, _“It would appear you had a nightmare…”_

 _“Ah…”_ she noted before she narrowed her eyes, _“Wait..why…”_

She placed her hand over her chest, and closed her eyes. The tattoo like markings became flaming red again, this time slowly retreating.

 _“Damn that asshole…”_ she grumbled.

A few moments of an awkward silence followed, before Chaplin excused himself to go make tea. Yuki noted that Karai still seemed to be quietly glaring ahead of her. 

_“Are you alright?”_ Yuki asked, _“You don’t look so good.”_

 _“That man...”_ Karai frowned deeply, _“That was Orochimaru, I take?”_

 _“You saw my dream...”_ Yuki gave her an odd look.

 _“N-not on purpose…”_ Karai mumbled, _“I…”_

 _“It’s ok.”_ Yuki reassured her, and took her hands, _“Though, that would explain it...”_

 _“Explain what?”_ Karai asked curiously.

 _“The white fox.”_ Yuki smiled softly.

_“White fox?”_

“ _It’s a spirit form...or at least that’s how Takara explained it before.”_

 _“Oh…”_ Karai murmured, _“Wait...who’s Takara?”_

_“He’s this guy who’s appeared in my dreams for as long as I can remember. He usually manifests as either a man wearing a wolf mask or a golden brown wolf.”_

_“So, a spiritual guide?”_

_“I...guess?”_ she shrugged.

_“Is that what you meant with ‘not quite alone’ and ‘having a friend of sorts’?”_

_“Yeah…”_ she trailed off, her brows furrowing. _“Although, lately he’s been...”_

_“Hmm?”_

_“He’s hiding something from me. I can feel it.”_ she grumbled.

 _“Who’s hiding what?”_ Chaplin asked curiously as he entered with a pot of tea and three cups on a tray.

 _“Takara.”_ Yuki sighed, _“A guy who appears in my dreams.”_

 _“Huh.”_ he mused as he placed the tray down, _“I made chamomile.”_

 _“Chamomile?”_ Yuki asked curiously as he started pouring the tea.

 _“It’s a herbal tea with mild sedative properties,”_ Chaplin answered and handed her a cup, _“Thought it might help with what just happened.”_

 _“I see.”_ she murmured as she lifted it up and took in the scent, intrigued by the sweet herb-like aroma.

 _“So what exactly did Orochimaru do to you?”_ Karai asked, _“From what I could tell with what I saw, he is the reason for those markings and that horrible aura.”_

 _“Wait, you actually saw her dream?”_ Chaplin blinked in surprise.

 _“Just a small glimpse.”_ Karai’s eyes narrowed, _“Though, enough to know that he’s at least partially responsible for what happened earlier.”_

 _“The markings you saw is the cursed seal Orochimaru gave me.”_ she murmured as she pulled the collar of her shirt down, revealing three thin lines in a rip-like pattern under her collarbone.

 _“So how did you even end up with this guy?”_ Chaplin asked. _“He sounds like a real ass.”_

_“I suppose it was due to the medical ninjutsu.”_

_“Huh?”_

_“My mother was an Iryō Ninja.”_ **[1]**

_“Iryō Ninja?”_ Karai asked curiously, _“Like a war surgeon?”_

 _“Pretty much.”_ Yuki nodded, _“She was especially skilled at identifying poisons and creating appropriate antidotes. She taught me everything she knew. Well, almost everything…”_

 _“Almost?”_ Karai questioned.

 _“She was plagued by a very peculiar illness, so she wasn’t really able to teach me any proper taijutsu.”_ **[2]** Yuki explained, _“Despite being an apprentice of one of the greatest medics in the world, she didn’t know what it was, or even how to begin treating it.”_

 _“That’s the illness that took her life?”_ Karai asked.

 _“Yeah.”_ Yuki nodded sadly, _“I always wondered if she’d have made it if we managed to get home.”_

 _“Home?”_ Karai frowned.

 _“During the Second Shinobi War, she ended up very far from her home village.”_ Yuki explained, _“She met my father during this time.”_

 _“You said he died when you were an infant, right?”_ Chaplin recalled

 _“Yeah…”_ she nodded, _“She never really spoke about him, so I don’t really know anything more than the fact that they met when he saved her during the war, and that he died saving the two of us.”_

“That couldn’t have been easy.” Karai stated, “A single mother travelling with a small child. When did she get sick?”

 _“I’m not quite sure.”_ Yuki frowned, _“I remember symptoms even before the Third Shinobi War started.”_ **[3]**

_“Third Shinobi War?”_

_“It started when I was around 4 or 5. By the time it had ended around 3 years later, her condition had deteriorated so much that she was pretty much bedridden.”_ she explained, _“I apparently picked up medical ninjutsu very quickly. I suppose it was partially because I wanted to help her get better.”_

 _“That’s...”_ Karai faltered, unable to come up with the appropriate words.

 _“About a year after she died, this small gang cornered me. They outnumbered me, and my taijutsu skills were almost non-existent, but I refused to let them do what they pleased. I managed to take down two of them by using more lethal versions of my medical jutsu, not that it helped much, as it just seemed to piss the rest off more.”_ she sighed heavily, _“Though that’s more or less when Orochimaru happened to be passing by. I believe he saw potential in me as a medical assistant, and decided to help me out.”_

 _“He saved you.”_ Chaplin noted. _“But it came at a cost, I take?”_

 _“Yeah.”_ she nodded grimly, _“He’s completely obsessed with learning every single jutsu in existence. It’s not something anyone can achieve in one lifetime.”_

 _“So he’s aiming for immortality?”_ Chaplin guessed, _“That would explain why he’d want someone with a medical background to work with him.”_

 _“So if he wanted you as an ally, why did he do that to you?”_ Karai frowned.

 _“Probably because I told him to fuck right off when I realised what he was doing.”_ she grumbled.

“ _Oh…_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **[1]**  
>  Iryō Ninja or Iryō-nin (医療忍) usually gets translated as "Medical Ninja" and "Medic-nin" throughout the Naruto franchise, but I don't really feel like it always does the word enough justice, as they generally act more like battlefield surgeons than anything else.  
> When combined with the Kanji for “teacher”/“master”/“mentor” (師; shi), the two Kanji in "medical treatment" (医療 ; iryō) are used to write "doctor" (医師 ; ishi) and "nurse" (療師 ; ryōshi) respectively, so I’d say it's a bit closer to "Ninja Doctor" or "Ninja Nurse" in a majority of cases.  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  _Taijutsu_ (体術)  
> The term means 'body techniques', and refers to any techniques involving the martial arts or the optimisation of natural human abilities. _Taijutsu_ is, simply put, hand-to-hand combat.  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  Using the ages of Kakashi and the Ame orphans in the series, I was able to work out that Yuki would have been born somewhere between the end of the Second Shinobi War and the start of the Third Shinobi War. Still, trying to work out timelines in Naruto is really, REALLY frustrating (because the series doesn’t have a formal time/year system >.> ).  
> The only reason I’ve managed to make as much sense as I have is because of [Seelentau](https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/User:Seelentau) from the Naruto wiki. This madlad has spent YEARS putting together beautifully detailed timelines, totally saving me from countless migraines.  
> Back


	7. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks to [ErenCJaeger](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErenCJaeger/) and [ACSkywalker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACSkywalker) for Beta reading.
> 
> I recently got a job as a writer, proofreader and editor, so my time to work on fanfiction will be somewhat limited from now on.
> 
> On that note...  
> I've been writing fanfiction for about 11 years now. And despite this merely being a hobby, over the last decade I've gotten quite a few people telling me how it's a 'waste of time' as I can't sell my work. Guess what? I got this job _BECAUSE_ of my fan works. Because one of my beta readers saw potential in my writing.
> 
> So moral of the story: if you have a hobby which you're good at, don't let anybody tell you that it's a 'waste of time' just because you don't earn anything from it _(last I checked, most people SPEND money to indulge in their hobbies, so it doesn't even make sense!!)_ . And you never know when someone might be in need of whatever talent you have ;)

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 6

* * *

Yuki found herself sitting in the clearing once again, though for the first time in her life, this place didn’t make her feel at ease.

No, she was furious.

Furious at the fact that the one person she thought she could trust turned out to be lying to her as well. She heard a shuffle in the grass behind her, indicating that Takara was indeed there, but decided to not humor him, and opted to just silently stare ahead of her.

“Are you ignoring me?” he asked after a while.

“Well, you’re avoiding me when I ask you really important stuff, so I’m simply returning the favour.” she huffed.

She heard him grumble something under his breath, but couldn’t quite make out what he had said.

Another few minutes were spent in tense silence when he sighed and loomed over her.

“Oh, you suddenly want to have conversations again?” she glared at him, “Ok then, where the fuck were you during my last nightmare?”

“That girl, Karai, was there.” he stated, “She seemed pretty capable.”

“I don’t even know if I can trust these people yet.” she glared at him, “But then again...who knows if I can trust you?”

He made a small noise, sounding like a strained cough.

“Who or what is this ‘Walker’?”

“Uh…”

“You mentioned them last time after I described the design on the amulets.” she pointed out, “You called it ‘the Walker symbol’, if I recall correctly.”

“I have no idea what you are talking about.” he said quickly before backing up.

“Oh, hell no!” she bellowed as she jumped up.

All of a sudden, glowing lilac tendrils shot up from the ground, pinning Takara in place.

“Uh…” she stared at the scene in absolute shock, “What the hell was that?”

“Looks like your abilities are awakening.” he mumbled.

“Wait... _my_ abilities?” she narrowed her eyes, “Are you saying that was all _my_ doing?”

“Well, yeah.”

“You’re saying I’m an esper or something?” she scoffed. **[1]**

“Exactly.”

“You’re joking right?” she deadpanned.

“I’m not.” he shook his head, “Remember how you’d sometimes dream of things before they happen, or figure out when you’re dreaming?”

“You’re actually serious...” she murmured after a few moments of silence.

“Anyway, about your question.” Takara sighed, “They are called Void Walkers. Or just Walkers for short.”

“Huh?”

“A group of individuals with the ability to travel through time and space.” he explained, “They ensure that no one upsets the balance of the space-time continuum...probably.”

“ _P-probably?!_ ” she stammered. “That doesn’t even make sense!”

Takara just shrugged in response, making Yuki sigh in irritation.

“So are they the reason I’m here?”

“Given that the amulet you found has their symbol on it….maybe?” he shrugged, “Who knows?”

“That’s not exactly helpful information, you know.” she rolled her eyes.

Realising that she’s most likely not getting any more info out of him, she closed her eyes focusing on the tendrils restraining Takara, willing them to retreat. After focusing for a moment, they loosened and moved away.

“Oh, I’m free?”

“I doubt wrangling you for anything more will even help.” she muttered, “You’ll just talk in your stupid riddles again.”

“I see…” he murmured, “Well then, see ya.”

“Whatever.” she glowered as the surroundings faded away, and she was back in bed.

She got up quietly and walked to the mirror in the corner of the room, removing the embroidered covering that hung over it. **[2]**

“Am I really an esper?” she asked her reflection.

After blankly staring into the mirror for a few minutes, she pulled the cover back over the mirror, and flopped back onto the bed.

“Why does it feel like I just got told I’m the chosen one or something?” she sighed heavily.

* * *

_“So how’d it go?”_ Chaplin asked as Karai and Yuki returned from the training room.

 _“I got my ass handed to me.”_ Yuki sighed heavily. _“My taijutsu really does suck.”_

 _“You’re not really as bad at fighting as you say you are.”_ Karai interjected.

 _“Yeah right!”_ she scoffed. _“You beat the crap out of me.”_

 _“I’m serious.”_ Karai shook her head, _“I mean, sure, you’ll need to work on your reflexes and reactions, but I can see that you know the basics.”_

_“You seriously think so?”_

_“Yeah.”_ Karai nodded, _“If we do some training everyday, I’m sure you’ll improve in no time.”_

Chaplin’s phone pinged a bunch of times, he scooped it up quickly and read the contents before walking over to the other two.

 _“Oh...Yuki?”_ he called out, _“It would seem that Donatello has finished sorting out your documentation.”_

 _“Awesome!”_ Yuki grinned.

 _“That was quick.”_ Karai noted.

 _“It’s Donny.”_ Chaplin shrugged. _“He’s on a whole other level when it comes to these things.”_

_“True.”_

_“Speaking of documentation, I’m probably going to have to be looking for a job of sorts soon.”_ Yuki murmured.

 _“Before you try and get a job in medicine, I’ll have to warn you that you might have a slight problem in that regard.”_ Chaplin warned

_“What do you mean?”_

_“From what you’ve told us, your medical ninjutsu actually lets you heal wounds using your own energy. Correct?”_

Yuki nodded.

_“Due to advancements in science and technology, and the general lack of abilities such as yours in this world, many people don’t even believe it exists.”_

_“Ah.”_ Yuki murmured, _“What’s the process of becoming a medical practitioner in this world?”_

 _“Here specialized fields, such as medicine, generally require documentation in the form of a diploma or a degree, which requires a few years of study in a certified institution, like a university or college.”_ he explained, _“Nursing generally requires 3 to 4 years, becoming a doctor would take 6 to 8 years. It could take even longer if you want to become a surgeon.”_

_“Yikes.”_

_“Though, if you really want to, you’d still be able to go into a medical field called homeopathy.”_ he expressed, _“You just won’t be able to call yourself a doctor.”_

_“I see.”_

_“You could also look into Reiki healing, as it’s similar to the medical ninjutsu you use.”_ Karai added.

 _“Though, regardless of skills or qualifications you may or may not have, right now your main problem will be the language barrier, so just focus on learning English for now.”_ Chaplin reassured her.

 _“Right.”_

_“Though, other than fighting and medical ninjutsu, do you have any other skills?”_ Chaplin asked, _“In case you want to try something different?”_

 _“Of course.”_ Yuki nodded, _“As my mother used to say: ‘A kunoichi who can’t blend in with society is a dead kunoichi’, so I’ve been taught all sorts of things like cooking, sewing, flower arrangement and playing music.”_ **[3]**

_“That’s pretty good advice.”_ Karai agreed, _“Sounds like she was a very wise woman.”_

 _“She definitely was.”_ Yuki smiled softly.

 _“Actually, that gives me an idea…”_ Karai pondered.

_“Yes?”_

“ _It’s a very long story, but I’m currently trying to reform the Foot clan. Hopefully I can right the past wrongdoings and restore honour.”_

 _“And you think I could help?”_ Yuki asked

_“I believe so.”_

_“What did you have in mind?”_ Yuki asked curiously.

_“I was thinking that you can become something along the lines of a personal assistant.”_

_“Really?”_

_“It will give you ample opportunity to focus on improving your taijutsu skills, as well your English.”_ Karai conferred, _“And of course, your medical skills will help, since there is always that one student who thinks they are being funny when we’re handling weapons, and the next thing you know we have to rush people to the hospital, explain stuff to the police and apologize to family members.”_

_“Ah.”_

“ _Well, I’ll let you think about it.”_ Karai smiled gently before excusing herself to go take a shower.

 _“What did she mean by ‘righting the past wrongdoings and restoring honour’?”_ Yuki asked after Karai left the room, _“Did something happen in the Foot clan?”_

Chaplin’s demeanor changed slightly, his expression becoming more serious.

 _“Usually I don’t like to pry, but I’d like to know what the deal is before I devote myself to anything.”_ she added.

 _“Fair enough.”_ Chaplin sighed. _“Let’s just say that the former leader, Oroku Saki, wasn’t a very nice person. I mean, he did have his good moments, like what he did for Karai when he adopted her, but he hurt a lot of people, very deeply. She’s working very hard to make it up to those who were wronged and restore lost honour.”_

 _“I see…”_ Yuki murmured, _“In that case, I’d be happy to help.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **[1]**  
>  For people who might be unfamiliar with the word, ‘esper’ is another way to say ‘psychic’ or ‘medium’, and derived from ESP + er (ESP as in Extra Sensory Perception). It’s much more common in Japanese media, pronounced as _esupā_ (エスパー).  
> The Japanese word for ‘psychic ability’ is _chōnōryoku_ (超能力) while ‘ESP’ is _chōkankakuteki chikaku_ (超感覚的知覚). Both are quite a mouthful, so it’s no wonder they’d just stick to using shorter English terms.  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  During our stay in Tokyo, Aidan and I found that bedroom mirrors all had cloth coverings, often beautifully embroyded.  
> It would appear that in Japan, there’s a superstition that involves a woman from another world coming through mirrors, taking people away or stealing all the energy from their bodies while sleeping causing death. For this reason, many Japanese cover mirrors that are not in use.  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  _Kunoichi_ (くノ一) refers specifically to female ninja. Training for _kunoichi_ differed somewhat from ordinary ninja training, as _kunoichi_ generally prioritized learning traditional female skills as they would often need to be able to infiltrate enemy territory as ordinary women in order to spy on enemies or gather information.  
> The term _kunoichi_ is thought to derive from the names of characters that resemble the three strokes in the Japanese kanji character for "woman" (女; _onna_ ) in the following stroke order:  
> "く" is a hiragana character pronounced "ku"  
> "ノ" is a katakana character pronounced "no"  
> "一" is a kanji character pronounced "ichi" (and meaning "one")  
> Back


	8. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took me forever to write. Good grief.
> 
> So yeah, sorry for making you guys wait so long <.<

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 7

* * *

_“You don’t like it?”_

Yuki shook her head profusely as Chaplin took the cup from her.

 _“I mean it smells pretty nice, but the taste…”_ she shuddered in disgust.

 _“Ok, noted, no coffee.”_ he laughed.

The two of them were currently in a small coffee shop.

 _“Are you sure you’re fine with this?”_ Yuki asked, _“Honestly I can wait till Karai-san isn’t busy with meeti-”_

 _“Yuki, it’s fine.”_ he interjected, _“I might not really like having to go out shopping like this very much, but you need to get clothes that actually fit you.”_

 _“Alright, I got it.”_ she sighed, _“Thank you for taking time to help me with this.”_

He just nodded.

After a moment of silence, Yuki excused herself to go to the restrooms and got up, heading to the small bathroom at the back of the coffee shop.

She made her way to one of the stalls, and while she was using the toilet, noted the distinct sounds of someone throwing up in the stall next to her.

After finishing up, she found a rather sickly looking red-headed woman slumped against one of the sinks.

She quickly washed her hands before turning to the woman, _“Daijo…”_

She stopped herself, remembering that it was better to stick to English, “Are you ok?”

“Yeah…” the woman nodded, “Just a little-”

Noting the woman’s expression and sudden change in complexion, Yuki was quick to catch what was about to happen, ushering the woman back to the stalls, just in time for her to start puking again. Yuki sat with her for a while, holding her hair and soothingly rubbing her back.

After a while the red-head sat back down and sighed heavily before looking up at Yuki, “Thank you.”

“Ah…” Yuki put up her hands, waving them slightly **[1]**, “Is ok.”

“No really, thank you.” she smiled, “I’m April, by the way. April Jones.”

“Ah...nice to meet you.” Yuki nodded, her pronunciation still a bit awkward, “My name is Yuki Seiji.”

“Yuki Seiji?” April gave her an odd look before breaking in to a smile, and to Yuki’s utter surprise switched into somewhat decent Japanese, _“Ah...so you’re the famous ‘Yuki-chan’?”_

_“Wa-wait...you know who I am?”_

_“How could I not?”_ the red head chuckled, _“Mikey won’t shut up about you.”_

 _“Eh?!”_ Yuki’s jaw practically dropped, _“You know Mikey-kun?”_

 _“Yeah.”_ she nodded _“We go way back.”_

 _“Ah, I see…”_ Yuki nodded, 

April got up, looking somewhat healthier than she had a few moments ago.

 _“Feeling better now?”_ Yuki asked.

 _“Yeah…”_ April sighed.

 _“Let me know if I can help with anything else.”_ Yuki offered.

_“It’s just a bit of morning sickness. It’s been a lot better lately.”_

_“Oh...”_ Yuki realised, _“Congratulations.”_

_“Thanks.”_

They left the restroom together, making their way to the table where Chaplin had started on the cup of coffee Yuki ended up not drinking.

“Oh, hi April.” Chaplin greeted. 

“Hi.” she greeted back, _“Karai stuck in meetings today?”_

“Yeah.” he nodded.

She took a seat with them and grabbed a menu, _“So how has life been lately?”_

 _“Don’t tell me you’re getting coffee...”_ he gave her an odd look.

 _“Don’t worry.”_ she reassured, _“This place has really awesome rooibos drinks.”_

 _“Rooi...bos?”_ Yuki asked curiously.

 _“Yup. It’s herbal tea from Africa.”_ she explained, _“The name translates to ‘red bush’ in one of their languages.”_ **[2]**

 _“Of course…”_ Chaplin sighed, _“Why didn’t I think of that?”_

_“Huh?”_

_“You’d probably prefer red cappuccinos and red espressos.”_ he told Yuki. **[3]**

 _“Coffee not your thing?”_ April asked.

She shook her head, pulling a face, _“I prefer tea.”_

_“In that case, you should try this one.”_ April pointed on the menu.

Chaplin called over one of the waitresses, and April placed her and Yuki’s order.

 _“So...”_ Chaplin asked, _“How’s married life?”_

 _“Not bad.”_ she smiled.

_“Is Casey still being a paranoid dad-to-be?”_

_“Don’t get me started.”_ she groaned, _“I swear he’s getting worse.”_

_“Worse?”_

_“He wants to move to the farm permanently now.”_

_“Opposed to living with your mother-in-law?”_

_“Actually I don’t mind her. She’s awesome, and all...and the farm life is really soothing…”_

_“But?”_

_“What about the shop?”_

“Ah.” he noted.

The waitress returned with the drinks, “Shout if ya need anything else.”

“Will do.” April nodded and the waitress left to attend to customers nearby.

Yuki picked up the cup, hesitant to try the drink after what she had experienced with the coffee. However this time the surprise was pleasant, _“Oh wow...”_

 _“It’s good, right?”_ April asked.

 _“It is!”_ Yuki nodded happily, _“Thank you so much for recommending this!”_

 _“No problem.”_ April winked.

After finishing their drinks, they left the coffee shop together.

“You look like you're dreading something.” April gave Chaplin a look, “Are you ok?”

“Shopping isn’t exactly something I’m cut out for.” he sighed, “Especially not when buying entire wardrobes.”

“Would you like a hand?” April asked, “I need to buy maternity wear, so I might as well help out.”

“I’ll be really grateful if you did.” he admitted sheepishly.

She turned to Yuki, who was giving them a studious look.

_“Something wrong?”_

_“No.”_ she shook her head, _“I’m just wondering how long it will take for me to understand English enough for proper conversations.”_

 _“Oh, I see.”_ April noted.

After a brief discussion, April led the way to a clothing store she highly recommended.

Yuki didn’t know what it was about April, but something told her that she could trust the red-headed woman with her life. When she thought about it consciously, she gave off the same type of aura her mother used to.

 _“You seem troubled.”_ April said with concern after observing her for a while, _“Is something wrong?”_

Yuki shook her head, _“No, it’s nothing.”_

_“You sure?”_

_“I…”_ Yuki frowned.

 _“You’re a shinobi from a world where there’s a lot of shinobi around, right?”_ she shrugged, _“It would only make sense if you find it hard to trust people.”_

Yuki nodded, but remained silent.

_“I know how the guys were back when I met them, as well as from my own ninjutsu training.”_

_“You’re studying ninjutsu?”_

_“Yeah Splinter has been teaching me for a few years now.”_

_“So you’re a kunoichi as well?”_

_“I’m still in training.”_ she chuckled. _“And currently out of commission.”_

 _“Fair enough.”_ Yuki grinned, “ _Although, I feel like we’ll have fun training together when you’re able to again.”_

_“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea.”_

After they arrived at the store, the two women ended up browsing through clothes together, idly chatting about a wide variety of topics at the same time. After a while Yuki ended up subconsciously venting about Takara’s recent behaviour, causing her to berate herself.

 _“Takara?”_ April asked, _“Is he a childhood friend?”_

Yuki shook her head.

 _“I honestly don’t really know much about him.”_ she sighed, _“He’s been appearing in my dreams since I was little. I suppose you can say he’s something along the lines of a spirit guide.”_

 _“A spirit guide, huh? That’s pretty interesting.”_ April murmured, _“Do you dislike him?”_

 _“Not really.”_ she frowned, _“He’s just been acting really odd since I got transported here.”_

_“Odd how?”_

_“It’s like he’s hiding something big.”_ Yuki sighed, _“And now it turns out I might be an esper.”_

 _“Esper…”_ April murmured, _“As in someone with psychic abilities, right?”_

 _“Pretty much, yeah.”_

_“You should talk to Splinter about that.”_ April suggested, _“If anyone can help you with ESP and psychic abilities, it’s him.”_

 _“Really?”_ Yuki asked.

 _“Absolutely.”_ the red-head gave her a grin, _“He’s an amazing teacher, especially when it comes to the mystic arts.”_

Once Yuki was satisfied with her selection and April had found a few pieces of maternity wear, they began making their way to the spot where Chaplin had been waiting for them.

 _“On the note of shopping, I run an antique shop, and occasionally get some Japanese in.”_ April told her, _“Let me know if there’s anything specific you’re looking for, ‘kay?”_

 _“Actually there is something…”_ Yuki replied, _“I’m looking for a koto. I haven’t had a chance to play in a very long time.”_

 _“Hmmm…”_ April was deep in thought for a few seconds, _“I know it’s not quite the same, but someone recently sold me a_ guzheng _.”_

“Gu...zheng?”

 _“It’s the Chinese instrument the koto originated from.”_ she explained, _“The only real difference is that it has 21 strings rather than 13.”_

 _“That sounds interesting.”_ Yuki grinned.

The two found Chaplin idly browsing on his phone.

 _“You two got everything you need?”_ he asked as they reunited.

 _“Yup.”_ Yuki nodded.

He stopped for a moment and eyed Yuki’s selection of clothes. 

_“You really are a cat lady, through and through.”_ he murmured with a slight chuckle.

 _“Liking knitwear doesn’t make someone a cat lady.”_ April shook her head. 

_“Eh?”_ Yuki asked, _“What’s a cat lady?”_

 _“It’s a stereotype of unmarried women who end up owning a bunch of cats and obsessed with knitwear and knitting.”_ April explained.

 _“Is that so?”_ Yuki murmured before chuckling, _“Guess I’m in trouble.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've learned a lot over the last 10 years. About life and people, which has greatly influenced my writing, and specifically the way I create and write characters.
> 
> An interesting thing to note, is that I didn't base Yuki off anyone when I first created her. I simply created someone who I thought would be interesting and unique. And she definitely was.
> 
> However, even though I decided to make her a medic/nurse, I didn't truly make it a part of her character. As I started giving her more of a 'nurse-like persona' in the rewrite, I subconsciously ended up basing her on someone in my life: my mother.
> 
> I mean, logically it makes sense, seeing as my mom _is_ a nurse. _(So if Yuki acts like a scary, angry mom when she loses her temper...this is why!)_
> 
> Although, despite the similarities, unlike Yuki, my mother absolutely LOVES coffee. Though none of the instant stuff. She drinks the strong, dark roasts. Or as we call it in Afrikaans: _moerkoffie_ (“mess-you-up coffee”)
> 
>  **[1]**  
>  This is a Japanese gesture meaning “No need to thank me” or “You’re giving me too much praise”  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  Rooibos (it’s pronounced as ROY-BOHS, and means ‘red bush’ in Afrikaans.)  
> It’s a naturally caffeine free and antioxidant rich herbal tea that grows in the Western and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. Something it’s quite popular for is the fact that it’s safe for pregnant women and babies to consume. A lot of soaps, body lotions and creams (including baby products) also utilise rooibos as it works really well for various skin ailments. All that aside, it’s an extremely popular tea here in South Africa.
> 
> As an Afrikaner _(a person of the demographic from which Afrikaans hails)_ , I’ve been drinking this since infancy, and it’s still one of my favourite teas even as I approach my 30s. It’s one of those teas that you can add virtually anything to without ruining the taste, and does well when blended with other teas as well. My absolute favourite is when it’s brewed with fresh turmeric, fresh ginger, a cinnamon stick, honey and lemon _(very soothing for colds, flu and the like!)_.
> 
> I know that many Japanese people absolutely LOVE it. We took our host family some when we went to Tokyo, and one of ACSkywalker’s fellow kendoka literally buys like 20 boxes to take in his carry-on luggage whenever they go back to Japan, because it’s so much more expensive there!  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  Red cappuccino and red espresso is made using rooibos tea rather than coffee. I’m personally not a big fan of red espresso, but do like red cappuccino once in a while.  
> Back


	9. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Apologies for how long this chapter took.**
> 
> **Recently my co-worker/Beta reader has had a crap ton of connectivity issues, already making it quite hard for us to keep up with deadlines in the writing department. Of course as fate would have it, just as everything seemed to be fixed, South Africa’s A+ services surges his entire area, decimating his fiber line and exploding his modem.**
> 
> **(ﾉꐦ ⊙曲ఠ)ﾉ彡┻━┻**
> 
> **I do honestly love my country, but for fuck sakes I hate it too sometimes.**
> 
> **(╬ Ò ‸ Ó)**
> 
> * * *
> 
> _**Beta’s note:**_  
>  _I’m back now! After the whole modem incident got sorted (which took a while, this is SA, after all, even private entities take a while to do their job), I caught COVID! Which then put me out of commission for even longer; my condition has improved greatly over the last few days, though I’m nowhere near making a full recovery. Stay safe out there, humans._
> 
> * * *
> 
> Anyhoo..on the nicer side, I’ve made some cool artsy stuff for my writing!
> 
> I made official volume covers as well as a 3D model of Yuki using VRoid Studios!  
> Volume 1’s cover is in the foreword if you want to go check it out, and some GIFs and pictures of the 3D model are in the end notes.

* * *

**Ninja Tales**

Volume 1 - Snowfall

Chapter 8

* * *

Walking through the sewers, on his way back to his lab, Leatherhead heard a small noise a few paces away from him.

 _“ Dare?”_ **[1]** a distinctly feminine called out.

Dammit, just what he needed, more people in the sewers.

Moving as quickly as he could, he made a break for it. Seemingly unable to shake whoever was following him, he had begun to wonder if his pursuer was even human.

As running away didn’t seem to help much, he came to a halt and waited for whatever was following him. His heart sank as a rather small human female poked her head around the corner. **[2]**

A few seconds of awkward silence passed as the silver haired woman blinked in confusion.

He anticipated that she’d start screaming and run away in terror, but instead she calmly murmured: _“Heh...ōkina wani mo iru yōdesu ne.”_ **[3]**

“Wh-what?” he stammered.

 _“Nihongo wa hanasemasu ka?”_ **[4]**

As another moment of silence passed, she sighed, greeting him in a heavily accented “Hello.”

“Hi…” he greeted back, somewhat awkwardly.

“My name is Yuki Seiji.” she bowed slightly as she introduced herself.

Leatherhead sighed in relief, she was blatantly unfazed by the fact that he was a 7 foot, mutant crocodile, giving him the sense that he could relax, he then introduced himself in return, “I’m Leatherhead.”

“Nice to meet you.” she grinned widely.

“Uh...nice to meet you too, Miss Seiji.”

“Ah...Yuki is ok.” she reassured.

“Ah, sure.” he nodded

There was yet another moment of silence before Leatherhead cleared his throat.

“Uhm...so, Yuki” he paused, “...why are you in the sewers?”

“Ah...English not good.” she explained, laughing nervously as she scratched the back of her head.

“I...see?”

“Me…” she frowned, “...lost.”

“Oh…” he nodded in understanding, “I can show you how to get back up to-”

“No!” she said very quickly, looking somewhat frantic, “Me...ano...look for...”

She paused for a bit before mumbling to herself.

_“...kame? Kame wa…nandake?”_

“You think you could draw it?”

“Du...raw?”

He grinned as he fished a piece of paper and pencil out of his lab coat pockets.

 _“Ah, souka…”_ **[5]** she murmured as she took the items from him.

She drew a somewhat crude looking tortoise and pointed at it “Me look for _kame_.”

‘A tortoise?’ he frowned, before he remembered something that both Donatello and Splinter had mentioned before, ‘No, wait…‘kame’ is the Japanese word for tortoise _AND_ turtle. Don’t tell me...’

“You’re looking for the turtles?” he asked, frowning.

“Ah..turtle!” she exclaimed, “Hai! Me Turtle-san look for.” **[6]**

He was somewhat conflicted now. She appeared harmless enough, and seemed quite at ease around him, but that didn’t necessarily mean she was trustworthy, his experiences with humans had taught him that much.

“Know where Turtle-san live?” she asked, an excited grin on her face.

Noting his hesitation she clasped her hands together, “Please? Turtle-san help find? ”

He sighed heavily, pulling out the shell cell that Donatello had given him...

* * *

Sitting in his lab, Donatello was working on an upgrade for their security software when his shell cell rang. Without even registering the caller ID, he answered...only for him to burst out into hysterical laughter.

“Donny?” Mikey poked his head around the corner, wondering what his brother found so funny, soon followed by Leo and Raph.

“It’s…” he heaved, desperately trying to talk through the fits of laughter, “It’s Yuki…”

Tapping the speaker button, Leatherhead’s confused voice could be heard “Donatello? What is going on? Who the heck is this girl?”

 _“Ah? Donny-san? You’re speaking to Donny-san?”_ Yuki’s voice popped up in the background.

“Wait, she actually knows you?” Leatherhead asked in shock.

Raph and Mikey started snickering in the background.

“Leatherhead, could please you put her on speaker?” Leo asked, struggling to suppress his own urge to laugh.

“Yeah...sure…” Leatherhead answered.

 _“Yuki, where are you?”_ Leo asked.

 _“In the sewers?”_ she answered, _“I was looking for you guys, but I got lost. I found Wani-san -”_

 _“WANI-SAN?!”_ Donatello’s laughter was even more hysterical now.

“Uh…” Leatherhead sounded even more confused.

“ _Wani_ means crocodile or alligator.” Leo explained, just barely concealing his laughter, “ _Wani-san_ would roughly translate to ‘Mr. Crocodile’.”

“Oh…”

There was a bit of a pause before Leatherhead cleared his throat.

“So it’s safe to bring her over, then?”

“Absolutely.” Leo answered.

* * *

After hanging up, he stuffed the shell cell back into his lab coat pocket.

“Ano...” she cleared her throat, “Re..za...eh...”

Noting her obvious struggle with his name he told her, “Wani-san is fine.”

 _“ Eh?”_ she asked, confounded, _“Ii no ka?”_ **[7]**

Despite not understanding the words she had spoken, her tone had conveyed what she was saying.

“Yes I’m sure.” he chuckled.

“Ok…” she grinned again, “Wani-san know Donny-san?”

“Yes.” he nodded, still a little awkward, “He’s my best friend.”

“Ah.”

“Well, let’s go and meet them.” he stated as he started walking.

“Hai!” she nodded and followed.

The journey was mostly silent, as Leatherhead had opted to use gestures rather than words.

 _“EH?!”_ she stammered as they stepped into the Hamato residence, _“SUGOI?!”_ **[8]**

 _“Pretty cool huh?”_ Raph asked with a grin.

 _“This place looks amazing!”_ she exclaimed, _“I was worried when I heard you guys live in the sewers, but this is just...wow…”_

 _“I’m glad you like our home.”_ Donny chuckled. _“It’s good to see you, are you well?”_ **[9]**

 _“Yup.” >_ she grinned, _“And you guys?”_

 _“No complaints.”_ Donny shrugged

_“Same here.”/em >_

_“And how are you holding up with Mikey being…”_ she paused, _“...well, all mendōkusai and all?”_ **[10]**

 _“What?”_ **[11]**

 _“I met April-san the other day.”_ Yuki mused, _“She recognised me because Mikey-kun apparently doesn’t stop talking about me?”_

 _“You have no idea.”_ Raph groaned, _“I mean, I think you’re cool and all, but I wish he would just shut up for one minute.”_

She shook her head and sighed.

“YUKI!”

Before she could properly react, a green-and-orange blur barreled into her. It took her a few seconds to realise that it was, in fact, the youngest turtle who had decided to greet her with a bearhug.

“Ano...hello...Mikey-kun.” she stammered, reeling from the obvious culture shock.

“Dammit Mikey!” Raph glowered, “Are you trying to scare her away!?”

“But hugs are good for you!” he pouted, “Like that Virginia lady said.”

 _“He does have a point.”_ Donny shrugged, _“Virginia Satir, a pioneer in family therapy, did manage to find some evidence that hugs play a vital role in emotional stability and growth.”_ **[12]**

 _“Oh?”_ Yuki mused, Mikey still clinging onto her, _“In that case, I suppose I’m just gonna have to get used to getting hugged more often.”_

“Oi, Bonehead, you can let go of her now.” Raph sighed.

Mikey let go, albeit with a pout, and Yuki had to suppress the urge to laugh at him behaving like a literal child.

 _“Oh, I almost forgot.”_ she stated as she handed the messenger bag she had with her to him.

 _“What is it?”_ Leo asked as he noted a neatly wrapped parcel inside.

 _“It’s a gift.”_ she grinned, _“I never properly thanked you guys for helping me when I arrived.”_

_“You really didn’t have to go and-”_

_“For real!”_ she countered, _“I’d have been sooo screwed without you guys!”_

 _“In that case, thank you.”_ he nodded.

He opened the gift, revealing an assortment of small objects that looked like a collection of figurines.

“Oooh...pretty.” Mikey crooned as he peered into the box, “But what exactly is it?”

“Wagashi.” Leo explained, “Traditional Japanese sweets.” **[13]**

 _“Wagashi?”_ Donny gave her an incredulous look, _“Where in the world did you even find wagashi?”_

_“I made them.”_

_“Homemade wagashi?”_ Splinter asked as he joined the group, _“Now that’s something I haven’t had in a long time.”_

 _“Good day, Splinter-sensei.”_ she greeted.

 _“It’s good to see you, Yuki-chan.”_ he responded, _“What brings you to our humble home today?”_

 _“I came to say ‘hi’.”_ she grinned, _“And I need some help with something.”_

 _“And what might that be?”_ Splinter enquired.

 _“I need advice.”_ she explained, _“April-san said that you are the best person to talk to.”_

_“Oh?”_

_“It’s uh…”_ she paused, _“...well…”_

Noting her struggle to speak about whatever she had on her mind, he gestured in the direction of the kitchen, _“Come. We can discuss it while we make tea.”_

She nodded, following him to the kitchen. 

“So what’s the story with her?” Leatherhead asked, seating himself on a nearby chair.

“Remember that odd signal we started catching a while ago?” Donny asked.

“She’s the person that got transported that night?” Leatherhead guessed.

“Yup, in the flesh.”

“She seems pretty human for someone not from this world.” he noted.

“I’m starting to think that she _is_ human, but from an alternate reality.”

“What makes you think that?” Leatherhead asked.

“Her culture is essentially Japanese, but she didn’t recognise any of our maps of Earth, not even Japan.”

“Huh.” he murmured, “She’s pretty fast for a human though.”

“In her world, it would appear that Ninja are common to the point of forming the military.”

“Then I assume that she’s also a ninja?” Leatherhead concluded, “That would explain how she kept up with me, at least…”

“Yup!” Mikey beamed, “You should see the cool jutsu she knows!”

“Mikey…” Raph sighed.

“What?” Mikey pouted, “Her summoning jutsu is awesome.”

“Her summoning jutsu is cool and all, but you don’t have to remind us of the fact every 10 fucking minutes!” Raph fumed.

“Language, Raph.” Leo gave him stinkeye.

“Oh, fuck off, Fearless.” he huffed.

“Summoning jutsu?” Leatherhead asked, intrigued.

“Yeah, she can summon cats!” Mikey practically beamed, “It’s why she’s not scared of us...because she’s used to talking animals like us!”

“Oh.” Leatherhead murmured, “That does seem pretty neat.”

“Right?!” Mikey crooned.

“You seem unsure about something, though, Leo.” Leatherhead observed.

“It’s about what she said when we met her.” Leo frowned, “Something along the lines of ‘marked for life’.”

“What do you suppose she could have meant?”

“It would appear that before she was transported by the artefact, she was escaping from a rogue ninja known as Orochimaru.”

“Escaping?” Leatherhead frowned, “You suspect this ninja did something to her?”

“Let’s just say we’re getting major Agent Bishop vibes from what she’s described about him so far.” Raph grumbled.

_“Are you guys talking about me?”_

Looking up, they found that Yuki had returned, holding a tray of teacups. Splinter followed soon after with a steaming pot of tea.

 _“You could tell?”_ Donny asked.

 _“I heard Orochimaru being mentioned.”_ she explained as she set the tray down.

 _“Ah...right...”_ he mused.

 _“We’re worried about what you said on the night you first appeared…”_ Leo explained, _“About being ‘marked for life’, as you put it.”_

 _“Oh…”_ she murmured as she started pouring tea.

 _“Orochimaru...he did something horrible to you, didn’t he?”_ Raph frowned, his voice laced with subtly growing rage.

She was stunned, but touched at their concern.

 _“It seems not much gets past you guys.”_ She pulled the collar of her shirt down to reveal the mark under her collarbone, _“It’s called the Chi no Juin.”_

Noting the looks of confusion on Mikey and Leatherheads faces, Donny explained, “ _Chi no Juin_...that would translate as the Cursed seal of Earth.”

“Ah…” Mikey nodded, “But what is it?”

 _“What is it exactly?”_ Donny asked

 _“A seal that forcibly draws my chakra and replaces it with Orochimaru’s senjutsu chakra.”_ **[14]**

 _“Senjutsu chakra?”_ Donny asked, curiosity evident in his tone.

 _“Senjustu utilises natural energy in addition to the mix of physical and spiritual energies that chakra is made up of…”_ she trailed off, sighing as she noted the confused and vacant stares she was getting, _“Basically, it makes me much stronger, but at the cost of my sanity.”_

 _“Why would he do that?”_ Leo asked.

 _“I honestly don’t know.”_ she sighed, _“He’s a self centred ass who’s obsessed with immortality and learning every jutsu in existence. I gave up trying to understand his reasoning a long time ago.”_

 _“Oh I get you.”_ Raph grumbled, _“We know a guy like that too.”_

 _“Let’s hope I never meet this person.”_ she remarked, _“One was enough.”_

 _“Agreed.”_ Raph nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, considering most 3D model programs, VRoid studio is exceptionally easy to use, plus the models are pre-rigged, so you don’t even have to struggle with animation and such. And it’s also 100% FREE!  
> 
> 
>   
> **[1]**  
>  _Dare_ (誰) literally means “who”, but is often interpreted as “Who’s there?”  
> Back
> 
>  **[2]**  
>  Just for reference: Yuki’s height is 1,58 m (5'2''), while Leatherhead stands at 2,13 m (7 feet)  
> Back
> 
>  **[3]**  
>  _Heh...ōkina wani mo iru yōdesu ne_ (へぇ…大きなワニもいるようですね) means “Ah...so would seem that there are giant crocodiles here as well.”  
> Back
> 
>  **[4]**  
>  _Nihongo wa hanasemasu ka?_ (日本語は話せますか？) means “Do [you] speak Japanese?”  
> Back
> 
>  **[5]**  
>  _Ah, souka_ (ああ、そうか) means “Oh, I see”  
> Back
> 
>  **[6]**  
>  Throughout writing this chapter, I had to constantly remind myself that Yuki’s broken English would follow Japanese grammar rules and hence be Subject-Object-Verb in most cases.  
> Back
> 
> **[7]**  
>  _Ii no ka?_ (いいのか？) means “You sure that’s ok?”  
> Back
> 
> **[8]**  
>  _Sugoi_ (すごい) is a word that’s typically used to express feeling awestruck or being overwhelmed, be it good or bad. A similar English expression would go somewhere along the lines of “Oh…wow”.  
> Back
> 
>  **[9]**  
>  I found that using ‘how are you?’ doesn’t really seem to work well when things are supposed to be in Japanese. Especially when Aidan was getting confused by this exact phrase while learning the language.
> 
> The Japanese equivalent of “How are you?” is _Genki desu ka?_ (元気ですか)
> 
> However _genki_ (元気) literally means “healthy”, “in good spirits” or “enthusiastic”, and therefore _Genki desu ka?_ (元気ですか) would be literally translated “Are [you] healthy/doing well?” rather than the English “How are you doing?”  
> Back
> 
>  **[10]**  
>  _Mendōkusai_ (面倒臭い) is a Japanese phrase that means ‘troublesome’ or ‘bothersome’.  
> This is also what Shikamaru’s original Japanese catchphrase is, as opposed to the dub’s “What a drag...”  
> Back
> 
>  **[11]**  
>  I originally put a ‘Huh?’ here. Then [SHUNchan](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oa1iS7I_EfI) me realise that for most Japanese, ‘Huh?’ is actually pretty rude and offensive; somewhere between passive-aggressive and implying that you’re trying to pick a fight xD  
> Back
> 
>  **[12]**  
>  Virginia Satir, widely known as "Mother of Family Therapy", was especially known for her approach to family therapy and her pioneering work in the field of family reconstruction therapy.  
> One of her famous quotes goes as follows: “We need 4 hugs a day for survival. We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. We need 12 hugs a day for growth.”  
> Back
> 
>  **[13]**  
>  _Wagashi_ (和菓子) is usually enjoyed with green tea, and thus a staple at tea ceremonies.  
> Matcha/green tea is usually drunk unsweetened, but with the sweets, as they balance out the bitter.  
> Wagashi is also a very common choice for souvenirs in Japan.  
> Back
> 
>  **[14]**  
>  Senjutsu Chakra (仙術チャクラ) means ‘Sage chakra’  
> Back
> 
> Oh wow...didn't realise how many notes were in here till I started coding the note URLs.  
> 


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